How political engineering can solve problems, by Obasanjo

To stem the way politics is having adverse effect on the development and growth of the nation, political engineering can be used to solve political problems.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo advocated this at the third African Engineering Deans Council Summit (AEDC) yesterday, with the theme: Engineering for Socio-Economic Development of Africa, held at Covenant University, Ota Ogun State.

He lamented that the society is experiencing serious deficits due to lack of will to come together and seek ways of working out solutions to the problems without any political undertones.

Obasanjo, a former chairman of African Union (AU), argued that the interest of the African continent should be put at heart to take it from backwardness, adding that engineering development is good for Africa because it would save the continent from suffering the drawback of political issues.

He said: “If Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology are instruments of development and progress for others, and ours cannot be different, our cooperation and collaboration should have come earlier no matter what we are doing at national levels.

“If Africa is the cradle of humanity and engineering from the Stone Age has provided the ingredients of progress and development in human civilisation, why then did Africa slide back.

“Whatever may be our answers to this pertinent question, we should only note them to guide our present and our future and not hold us back or hold us down.’’

In his address, the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Office (EVC/CEO), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Professor Umar Danbatta, said that the engineering sector is the bedrock of many other sectors, adding that it plays a prominent role in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Danbatta therefore tasked engineering educators to take a closer look at how engineering students are prepared for the “real world.”

The President, Council of AEDC, Prof Adagbonyin Obiazi, said to achieve the aspirations as expressed in the African Union Agenda for 2063, Africa must use its resources in driving its development.

“For Africa to attain a high standard of living, she needs well educated citizens with skills underlined by science, technology and innovation with good access to basic necessities of life including shelter, water, sanitation, energy, public transport and ICT as well as modern agriculture for increased productivity.

“African engineers must be fully involved. Africa must solve Africa’s problems. AEDC is poised to work through AU to help foster collaboration and synergy in developing the technologies, manpower, skills and competencies required to tackle Africa’s multiple infrastructural and developmental challenges and raise the bar of growth and advancement for the continent.”